Xander Unlimited
by Shadow Master
Summary: BtVSMulti-Crossover. Xander centered. Life for Xander has hit a low with his friends pushing him away 'for his own safety'. However things are going to take a turn for the wierd that will change our favorite Zeppo in ways no one every imagined!
1. Default Chapter

"Xander Unlimited" by Shadow Master aka Ryley Breen

email address : 

Disclaimer: This is to state that I do not own nor have I ever owned the rights to the anime series 'Final Fantasy Unlimited' or the TV series 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'. I also do not own any of the other Anime or other shows that might show up in later chapters. I am not going to be making any sort of profit from this but rather I am doing this for the simple fact that I enjoy writing stories like this.

Note : This is just an idea I came up with while watching Japanese versions of the anime series 'Final Fantasy Unlimited' that I downloaded. It is just a compulsion I have to try and mix these two and depending on the response I get from you the readers. If I get enough positive reviews I'll continue with the next chapter but if I get absolutely nothing I will just let it die right there. This is just a warning to you the readers. AAANNNDDD now on with the story……

**_Xander Unlimited_**

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Okay this can either turn out to be my one shining moment or my **last** moment! Xander thought to himself as he stared down the zombie O'Toole.

It had started as such a normal night or as normal as a night in Sunnydale can be given that it is sitting on top of a Hellmouth. He had started the day on a down swing with Buffy and the gang pushing him away from slayage in general under the guise of keeping him safe but he could tell that it was more because they didn't think he had anything useful to contribute. While the more emotional side of himself denied it he had to admit they had a small and perhaps biased point as far as what he could do compared to the rest of them. After all Buffy and Faith were Slayers, Willow was a witch, Giles was a Watcher and Angel was the Vampire with a soul. They all had something special and unique to contribute and there he was mister Joe Normal who was only really there because he knew what really went on at night in this town. It was in a way damage control from a certain point of view, keep all those who knew about Buffy's unique occupation under one roof and where you could control them. Tactically it was sound but it didn't please Xander one bit to think that perhaps that was the reason he had been allowed to stick around for so long. His more emotional side yelled that 'Giles wouldn't do that to him! They were friends!' but the more logical part of him realized that it was at least a possibility. Still he had come to believe over the past two or so years that he was a part of the team and as such had earned the right to fight by their side.

Still it was on all their faces if he took a hit during a battle or was humiliated at a time he was trying to be heroic. The look that said that 'Xander shouldn't be in this fight' or 'Xander's more of a liability than a help' and the more he saw it the more he had come to believe it. It was perhaps one of the reasons he had tried to make one last bid for a place in their inner circle by getting his hands on a set of wheels. He could be the wheel man, get them where they need to go in a hurry and provide them a quick escape if they got in over their heads. Unfortunately his choice of wheels led to them not taking him seriously and they all but laughed at this final attempt to be part of the team. It was then that he had resigned himself to the fact that being the knight in shining armor for the people that mattered the most to him was gone. It had been funny, despite all the inherent danger involved in the slaying he had thought of it as a kind of adventure straight out of a movie or TV show. Here they were, a real mystery Inc group, fighting the forces of darkness and all the things that went bump in the night with the only difference being that there was no old geezer in a mask. While the jarring pain helped clue him into the fact that it wasn't all fun and games he still wanted to help out his friends and fight the good fight. This morning they had cut them out of it because they didn't want him to get hurt and didn't think he had anything to contribute.

Strange how things wound up going in the exact opposite direction they wanted. he thought to himself as he watched the seconds tick off the bomb in front of him.

That's right he said a bomb. He had been out on a date with a young lady with a knowledge of cars and had been trying to look less than clueless with what she was talking about when he had accidently rear-ended Jack O'Tool's car. He had tried to talk his way out of it without seeming too unmanly in front of his date but had failed miserably. That wasn't to say that he wasn't busy for the rest of the night since Jack had apparently decided that the best way for him to pay off the date was to be his designated driver for the night. Things had gone from bad to worse when O'Toole had raised some of his old buddies from the grave as Zombies. He had run into Giles and tried to clue him into the fact that all was not right with him but Giles was so into speaking with some puff of light to really see what was going on and so the madness had continued. On the plus side he had managed eventually to get away from them and had the luck to pull Faith's hot buns out of the fire when he had spotted her being attacked by demons. She had repaid him with sex which was always a good thing as far as his adolescent mind was concerned but the experience was slightly soured by the fact that she had tossed him out in his underwear after she was done with him. That of course had left him with his mind spinning and trying to make sense of everything that had happened that night. This of course had led him to his current predicament which was staring down a ticking bomb with Jack O'Toole looking for a way to get the heck out of there.

"I know what you're thinkin'. Can I get by him? Get up the stairs, out of the building, seconds ticking away... I don't love your chances." Xander said as a way of dealing with the rising fear and anxiety although he managed to keep it out of his voice for the most part.

"Then you'll die, too." O'Toole retorted as if trying to make Xander run away so he himself could get out.

Raising his eyebrows Xander replied "Yeah, looks like. So I guess the question

really is... who has less fear?"

"I'm not afraid to die. I'm already dead." Jack growls in an attempt to show he was without fear but it was clear from his frantically jerking eyes that the opposite was true.

"Yeah, but this is different. Being blowed up isn't walking around and drinking with your buddies dead. It's little bits being swept up by a janitor dead, and I don't think you're ready for that." Xander replied as if stating something that should be perfectly obvious to anyone with a brain.

This thankfully gets Jack thinking which causes Xander to give a silent 'YES' in his mind as he realizes that he has gained an advantage in this battle of the minds. He just hoped that he would have time to celebrate later here on Earth rather than in the land of the hereafter as he looked back to the timer on the bomb. This proved to be a mistake as Jack took advantage of his momentary distraction to charge and punch him across the jaw which sent him to the ground but not thankfully to unconsciousness. Knowing that there was no one now who knew enough about the inner workings of the bomb to disarm it Xander could only get to his feet and wonder what there was time left to do. There was less than ten seconds left on the clock before the bomb would blow and while he was quick on his feet there was no way he was going to be able to get to safety in time. Not that he was going to leave Buffy and the others to fry when the bomb set off the gas pipes and anything else combustable. The only chance he had was to try and move the main bomb away from the barrels it was sitting on since he was certain that zombie boy had intended to use them to enhance the destructive power of the main explosives. If he could get the bomb far enough away before the big boom it would likely only take out a section of the school rather than the entire school and the Hellmouth with it.

Not thinking beyond the main objective of getting the bomb away from the basement Xander gathered up the bomb in his arms and ran out the door and up the stairs. He couldn't see the timer as it was mashed up against his chest at the moment but he knew he only had seconds to go. It was right about then that his mind caught up to the fact that he would have no time to get to safety even if he dropped the bomb right then and there. He was going to die. An uncharacteristic smile came over his face as he realized that no matter what his friends thought of him later he would die a hero just like he had wanted when he this roller-coaster ride first started. So when the bomb finally hit zero the teenager known as Alexander "Xander" Harris left this realm of existence content in knowing that he had saved his friends and went out the way he had always wanted.

Sunnydale, The Next Day, Giles' Apartment

**__**

Xander was dead.

That was the only thought that filled the minds of those gathered there as they sat in the apartment with silence being the only thing besides air to fill the space between them. They had known something had gone wrong last night when a sudden explosion had rocked the high school moments after they had completed the spell to close the Hellmouth. For a moment they had thought it a belated attack by the Sisterhood of the Jhe but they discounted this knowing that while some demons like Mr.Trick availed themselves of the various nuances of modern tech most stayed primitive. They had however known that the explosion would draw the authorities and had decided that if they wished to avoid becoming suspects in the bombing they had best leave. It wasn't until earlier in the afternoon that they had learned the truth as a member of the local police department had shown up. He had asked him if any of them knew an Alexander LaVelle Harris had any ideas why he would have been at the High School last night. It had taken them a few moments to get over the shock of the fact that Xander had been at the High School last night and settle into the shock that he had been involved in the explosion. Willow in a panic had immediately asked where Xander was and if he was alright as they all believed that if Xander had been involved in the explosion than he was likely near it when it went off. She wasn't trying to say that Xander was accident-prone or anything just that he had the worst luck. The look that the detective sent her way was answer enough and the red-haired wicca sank to the ground in tears as he long life friend was taken from her. As Buffy tried to console her friend she overheard the police officer saying that some time last night someone had broken into the school and planted a bomb in the boiler room. From the finger prints left at the scene they had reason to suspect one Jack O'Toole to be responsible for the bomb along with at least three others but that the accomplices were unknown as they had apparently substituted their finger prints for people long dead.

Giles explained that while they did not know why Xander would have been at the school the Brit was certain that the black haired teen had had nothing to do with the bomb or O'Toole. The officer then said that from the evidence at the scene it appeared that Xander had been trying to get the bomb out of the building but had been caught in the explosion when it went off. The man tried to console them by saying that given the size of the blast and the amount of heat involved it was doubtful that Xander had time to feel any pain at all before he died. As it was the only thing that told them that he had even been there was an arm with his fingerprints had been found at the scene apparently blown off halfway up the fore-arm. It was believed that the rest of his body had been cremated in the blast and the fire that followed which meant that any funeral would be a closed casket one. Seeing that he had said enough for the moment the officer said he would leave them to their mourning and offered his sincerest regrets.

That pretty much left them where they were now at the moment, the entire group just sitting there absorbing the information they had been given. Willow was still crying silently as Oz offered what comfort he could to his girlfriend as she mourned the loss of her childhood friend. Giles was sitting there with his glasses in his hand looking at the floor with empty eyes that bespoke of great thought. Most likely he was running through the events leading up to last night trying to figure out if there was anything that he could have done differently. As for what Faith was thinking that was a bit harder as the dark-haired Slayer had only been with them a few months so no one really knew where she stood as far as Xander was concerned. As for Buffy herself she berated herself for persuading the others to aide her in pushing Xander away from the gang. She should have known that he would find some sort of trouble to get into and without the rest of them around he would have no one to pull his ass out of the fire. After all this was Sunnydale and that meant that the only way to avoid its supernatural troubles was to leave town completely. By sending Xander away she had killed him almost as surely as if she had been the one to set the bomb herself. Now he was gone and all she had to remember him by was a Xander-shaped hole in her heart that hurt her worse than anything.

"Just like X to go out with a bang." Faith suddenly said as dragged her gaze across the group.

"WHAT!?!" Willow asked angrily as if she was about to lunge at the Slayer.

"Easy Red! I'm just saying that Xander was always the White Knight of this group so it only makes sense that if he was going to bite the big one it would be saving our collective asses." ,Faith said defensively as she tried to explain her earlier comment more clearly, "That's twice he saved me last night. Damn him for dying before I could get a chance to repay him!"

Giles looked up and asked "What do you mean 'twice'?"

"Last night when I went looking for the twisted sisters I ran into a group of them by the baseball diamond in the park." , Faith explained as she went back into the event in her own mind, "I was givin' as good as I got but if X hadn't shown up when he did I'd be inside several demons' stomachs right now."

"That's Xander for you, jumping in head first and damn the consequences." Giles stated with a smile proud smile.

"Xander never did know when to back off." , Willow submitted with a small smile, "No matter how many bullies used to pick on me when we were younger he never hesitated to stand up and protect me."

"Guess it just goes to show you that you don't need to be special to be a hero." Oz said in his usual stoic manner although Willow could tell that he too was grieving for their fallen friend.

In that one sentence was the one fact that Buffy had never really believed until just now. While she had known that there were normal folk out there who fought vampires and demons she had always thought that the ones they killed were just the small fry or fledglings and that the real big bads could only be handled by people with a little something extra. Xander's sacrifice however had proven to her that while she might be able to do more than the average person she was not better.

I can't change what happened to Xander but I can make sure that the monster responsible doesn't get away with it!! she thought to herself as she got up and grabbed a stake from Giles' desk.

"Buffy where are you going?" Giles asked with some confusion.

"Gonna find Jack O'Toole and deliver some payback." , Buffy said with a glare that made it clear just how determined she was right then.

"Buffy as much as I can understand your grief at the moment but this is not a supernatural crime and as such falls under the jurisdiction of the police." Giles point out as he put his glasses back on.

"Giles these are the same cops who think vampires are gangs on PCP!" Buffy exclaimed incredulously at her Watcher.

"Besides what are the chances that something supernatural wasn't involved? I mean this is Sunnyhell after all." Faith pointed out as she got up to join her sister Slayer.

"Point taken." Giles remarked before he and the rest of the group the late Xander had dubbed the Scooby gang set out to do the only thing they could still do for their friend.

Find the one responsible for his death and avenge their friend.

An Unknown Location, Time Unknown

**__**

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Consciousness was a strange thing.

When you had it you took it for granted because it was always there but when you lost it in a particularly violent way it was hard as anything to get back. For Xander he knew he had lost it in probably the most violent way possible with an explosion but what puzzled him the most was why he was unconscious. He was pretty sure clutching a bomb to your chest when it goes off is generally fatal whether it be immediate or gradually in a hospital. Normally that sends a person to one of three places and two of those he had no interest in going while the third he was pretty sure he had earned a free pass into with the self-sacrifice he just made. If that was the case he should be awake and standing in one helluva line-up outside St.Peters gates waiting to be processed and shown his little patch of cloud. The fact that he wasn't left him wondering where the ol' Xander luck had dropped him this time and as if to answer the question he felt as though something had hit his leg. It was something that his mind had barely noticed, as distant as a memory, but it seemed to jump start the rest of his body as his senses slowly returned to him. The first was touch as he seemed to be laying up against a tree of some kind as if he had fallen asleep while enjoying a warm summer day. The next to return was smell as the aromas that assaulted his nose concurred that he was somewhere where plants were plentiful.

"What's wrong?" came the voice of what sounded like a little girl.

"A … A .. person …" answered the voice of a boy about the same age.

Have I landed in a park or something? Xander thought to himself as he felt the rest of his body begin to wake up with his ears.

"Is he dead?" asked the little girl curiously.

Deciding to prove otherwise Xander leaned forward with a groan as his aching body protested the sudden movement. Opening his eyes he saw that there were actually three people there: a girl dressed in pink with surprisingly hair of the same color. The little girl was clutching an older woman who looked to be more around his own age with black hair and dressed in some sort of orange dress in a style he had never seen before. Off to the right was the young boy he presumed was the one to trip over him. Behind them he could seem unusual buildings, ones that looked like apartment buildings in basic shape but seemed to be made entirely out of plants.

"W-where am I?" he asked with a voice so hoarse it was as if he hadn't used it in weeks.

This seemed to make them even more afraid before the pink haired girl said "That's our question!"

She has spunk. Kinda reminds me of Willow. he thought to himself.

"Did you get sucked into Neverland as well?" the girl asked.

"Neverland?" , he asked confused as he had never heard of an actual place by that name, "Is that a theme park or something?"

"Theme park?" the woman asked with a confusion that mirrored his own.

"Who are you?" asked the little girl.

"My name is Xander." He said with a slight groan as a sharp pain in his right arm.

"Are you hurt?" asked the woman who seemed to show genuine concern.

It was then that something seemed to catch the young boy's attention although Xander could not see what it was from where he was sitting.

"What's that?" the boy asked as the sound of some sort of mechanical humming began to reach Xander's ears.

"Looks like something we can ride on." Stated the young girl.

"You mean someone might be on it right now?" asked the boy looking at the girl.

"No .. there something dark about the energy flowing in that craft." , the woman stated with a wariness that indicated something was wrong, "It's not natural!"

Not natural? Does she mean demonic? Xander thought to himself before they all began to back away from him.

"A bomb?" exclaimed the boy with fear.

"Everyone run!!" yelled the woman as they all ran from him and presumably towards cover.

He tried to get to his feet but they were tangled in roots that he hadn't noticed before and that slowed him down considerably. Ripping at them as quickly as his sluggish limbs could manage he barely managed to get out of the small niche in the wall that he had woken up in before it was crushed by what looked like some sort of giant prism. Deciding he did not want to wait around to see what it did he turned right and ran for the entrance to a plant building and stood in the doorway. If nothing else living in California had taught him how to deal with disasters of the earth shaking kind and while this prism wasn't natural according to this woman. This turn out to be true as just as he finished his previous thought the prism exploded in a flash of white light that all but blinded him. When the light died and his vision cleared a giant mushroom was standing where the prism had been.

"Well there's something you don't see everyday." He murmered with a calm that he didn't really feel at the moment.

After all he was more used to dealing with things being more human sized so anything over ten feet tall was a little more than he wanted to face in this strange place. Then his mentioning of something strange obviously caused some higher being to up the ante a little bit as the front of the mushroom opened up at the point where the 'hat' met with the 'forehead' of the mushroom. What stuck out was an eyeball stuck on the end of a tentacle of some kind which proved that just when you thought things couldn't get any weirder they wind up doing just that. It seemed to look around for a moment but once it found what it was looking for the little circular brown spots at the bottom shot out from the body like battering rams smashing through anything in their path. He could hear some of the plant buildings collapsing near him but thankfully the building he was hiding next to seemed intact as the brown battering rams were reeled back into the mushroom's body.

The thing seemed to be tittering of laughter at the destruction it caused before it focused back on its primary target. Given that the only other people that he had seen so far in this crazy place was the woman and those two kids. He needed to get the fungus' attention to give them time to get away but how was the question of the day. Bringing up his right hand he was planning to yell at the thing and say something like 'hey slimey, don't you belong on a pizza' when he noticed something quite odd. Instead of a bare hand as he had expected there was a shiny golden cylindrical container latched onto his arm from his hand all the way up to his elbow. Eyes wide and jaw dropped he stared at this thing he had never seen before that looked like some kinda high-tech cast. Trying to flex the fingers on his right hand he could kinda feel them moving but when he tried to remove the cast it wouldn't come off. Movement from the mushroom caught his attention as something seemed to flip it into the air and away from the immediate area much to the tittering surprise of the mushroom itself. It landed with a resounding crash and lots of dirt tossed into the air with no sign of it getting up in the near future.

Well so much for that problem. he thought to himself as he looked back to the quandary that was his new accessory.

As he continued to look up his right arm he noticed that he had received more than the golden thermos attached to his arm. His clothes had changed from what he had been wearing back in Sunnydale and it kinda made him look darker than deadboy. From top to bottom he was wearing a cape of some kind a little high with the collar portion as it almost covered his entire mouth. Underneath was a black short-sleeved short and black jeans along with black combat boots to top off the whole ensemble. The only thing he thought was kinda cool was this red gun that looked like a cross between a hand-gun and the automatics he saw Col. O'Neil use on TV. How he had gotten those clothes he didn't know but for the moment it was better than nothing which was what the clothes he had been wearing probably were right then. Suddenly he felt a tremor in the ground coming from where the mushroom monster had landed and saw something he hadn't seen outside of Power Rangers. Just like in that kiddie show just when you thought that the monster was defeated it got super-sized and came back for more. Not long after he saw the kids and the woman run down the street in front of him and didn't even notice he was there.

Knowing that the mushroom wasn't going to be far behind Xander moved out of its direct path but followed it from a street parallel to the direction it was going. Looking to see if the trio were heading in any direction in particular he noticed that there seemed to be a sheer cliff-like drop off not far ahead. They'd be trapped if they didn't change direction soon but if they did the mushroom monster would catch up and then they'd be crushed. When he reached the end of the street he had been running on he didn't see the trio coming out of an alleyway so he assumed that they had just stopped dead at the edge of the cliff. He was about to use the red hand-gun to act as a distraction but before he could the mushroom monster slammed its fist into the ground and the screams of the woman and children told him they had been knocked off.

"NO!" he yelled as he rushed to a rock jutting out a bit from the edge to see if there had been anything soft like bushes or water to break their fall.

To say that it was a minor miracle that he found them hanging by a small handhold was an understatement. The kids were holding on for their lives trying not to fall and Xander hoped that the mushroom monster would move off now under the false premise that his targets had been killed falling off the cliff. It was not to be however as the mushroom monster leapt off the cliff and landed on the ground below with a boom. Xander knew what was going to happen next as the monster turned to finish off his prey and couldn't let that happen. However what he could do to prevent that with the red gun being too small to have a chance at having an affect.

"HELP US!!" came the plea for help from the young boy.

With those words all of a sudden Xander could feel something move in the golden cast that covered his lower right arm. Bringing it out from beneath his black cape he noticed that a clear circular lens suddenly light up and begin to rotate. It was then that his mind was assaulted with images he had no reference for and time seemed to slow down in order for him to properly comprehend what he was seeing. For the most part they were a blur but he could see some things but they made no real sense. He could see a woman with braided pig-tails hanging down the back of her head dressed in a brown duster, her face partially obscured by shadow. She seemed to be crying but whether they were tears of joy or sadness he could not tell without seeing her eyes. Then the scene shifted to a barren wasteland filled only with barren rock and dark grey ground and there was something coming at him tearing up the ground in front of him. The last image was that of a teenage male dressed entirely in white and grey cape and a dark grey crown with white hair and blue eyes. What made this scene different from the others was that a combination of emotions surged through him: grief, rage, and a need for revenge. Then it was all over and he was back on the edge of the cliff barely managing to remain still in face of the onslaught. Looking back at the mushroom monster he knew that he still needed to do something about it but this time however he knew what to do.

Bringing the cylinder to his chest he said "Soil, is my power!"

With that a set of propeller blades popped out of the cylinder and began spinning so fast that a noticeable wind began to flow. Once it seemed to reach its peak the propeller vanished and he extended his right arm out in front of him and watched in amazement as a green mist discharged from previously unnoticed holes in the side. When the mist disappeared something incredible happened to the metal object, it seemed to disassemble itself into itty-bitty pieces and whirl around his hand like a tornado with his forearm in the eye of the storm. Before he could try and ascertain what was going on the pieces of the metal cast began to reassemble but not into the shape it had been before. Instead it began to take the form of the mother of all guns straight from a sci-fi movie. It seemed to be made of four parts: first the hand grip which was supplemented by a brace around his wrist, second some sort of fish bowl containment vessel with some kind of black with red veins heart inside, third three places were the bullets were supposed to be placed and last a big three barrels arranged in an upside down triangle formation inside a solid gold case. As the process seemed to reach its conclusion the heart in the gun seemed to beat in time with his own and the drill that the propeller had sprouted from began to rev up.

"The Magun has thawed." Xander stated in a cold pointed voice.

The mushroom monster seemed to sense the power coming from the Magun and turned to face the new challenge.

If it's a challenge you want fungus boy I'll give you all you can handle! , Xander thought before declaring, "The soil charge triad to use on you has been decided!!"

Reaching to the leather belt that his red gun hung on and removed a bullet that contained a coal black like powder that was visible through the glass sides with gold bullet like components on either end.

"The origin of everything, Mother Black!" Xander declared holding it up for his target to see before flipping it like a coin into the bottom left slot of the bullet slots on the gun.

Reaching down again he removed a second bullet filled with a red powder that reminded him of the cooling embers of a campfire.

"That which burns everything, Fire Red!" Xander said holding the shell between his thumb and fore-finger.

Sliding it into the bottom right slot of the bullet slot chamber he reached down to what he knew was the bullet that would aide in combining the other two.

"… And finally the critical point for everything, Burning Gold!" he declared using a neat slight of hand trick to send the bullet into the air.

For a moment he was afraid that he was mistaken in letting the memories and impulses he had been feeling take control but the final bullet slid into place in the final available slot without trouble with the hole being closed up behind it. With this done his pulse accelerated in anticipation of what was to come and the black heart in the gun sped up accordingly as the drill began to pick up speed as if building up a charge that would fire the bullets. Taking careful aim at the mushroom monster he felt it was time to put the final nail in this things coffin.

"BURN! I Summon you! Phoenix!!" Xander yelled before pulling the trigger and was almost knocked off his feet as the Magun discharged.

He watched as black smoke from the discharge obscured the area directly in front of the gun before three comet like beams of light, colored similarly to the soil charges he had selected, emerged and headed towards the mushroom monster. Bringing up its right hand it tried to block the blast and when the two forces met each seemed determined to overcome the other. Eventually the beams disappeared and the mushroom monster was still standing and apparently unharmed. He was surprised when he did not feel any shock or anger that his attack had failed but he was utterly calm and seemed to be waiting for something. He didn't have long to wait as the mushroom monster seemed to go into convulsions and something seemed to be pushing against the inside of its skin as if trying to get out. Then with a surprisingly violent action it inflated like a balloon but it kept getting bigger and bigger and then just as it seemed as though it was going to exceed his estimation of its limit it exploded releasing a massive storm of fire. However order soon seemed to take over the chaotic storm of fire and the burning energy then took to the sky as it shifted into the form of a bird. With a quick flash of light it transformed and in the place of the fire flew a gigantic bird that could only be the Phoenix. With a beautiful cry that awed him it flew higher and higher into the sky until it seemed to break through some kind of glass roof made up of sky and clouds. For a moment it looked as though the pieces of the sky would continue to fall to the ground but suddenly they reversed course and repaired the hole the Phoenix had created to the point where it looked as though a hole had never existed.

When he looked down to re-examine the Magun, in order to fathom how such a artifact of technology could create something so wonderful, he was surprised to find it had somehow reverted back to its golden cast-like state.

"Amazing … " came the whisper of the little girl who had apparently climbed up with the others after the mushroom monster had been destroyed.

"That man … " added the black haired woman who stood to the girl's left.

"… Is like the wind." Finished the boy with equal awe.

Xander didn't know what to tell them. This was all so new to him both in where he found himself and what he now seemed to be capable of doing. This was nothing like what he had thought would happen to him when he had made that mad dash with the bomb up the basement stairs of the school. Obviously someone else had done this to him for some reason and until he met this entity all he could do was get along the best he could with his new circumstances.

A Short Distance Away 

**__**

**__**

From behind some fragments of the prism that the mushroom monster had emerged from an unusual figure stood watching. It looked like some limbless stuffed toy but it was man sized with a white face mask possessing the simplest of eye and mouth slits. It had a black head piece on with what looked like horns extended horizontally from the top of the head and a green and red pattern on either side of his body with a black zig-zag line down the middle. There was no real way to tell who this person was or what his intentions were but it was clear that he had been observing the battle and seemed intrigued.

"Well it seems we have a new player in the game and he has inherited the infamous Magun as well!" , the masked being said with glee, "This promises to be most interesting indeed!"

to be continued…

I have been pondering making this a multi-crossover with Xander being changed as he travels. This will not be like 'The Lost Warrior" series. I hope it will be even more interesting with a completely different line-up of shows and games being a part of the series. Of course this will entirely depend on the type of response I get from you the readers. I figure if I get more than ten reviews from ten separate people then that will be incentive enough to continue with this story. C U Later!!**__**


	2. The beginning of a journey and the start...

"Xander Unlimited" by Shadow Master aka Ryley Breen

Note: For those of you who do not know which Anime series I am currently taking material from here is a URL where you can aquire the information (world-wide-web-dot-f-f-u-d-v-d-dot-com-forward slash-status-forward slash-status-dot-php). Before you ask why I wrote the URL out like I did let me just say that that whenever I enter an email address or a URL into Microsoft Word it automatically makes it into a link. This would not be a problem if it showed up when I converted the chapter file into an html document but it does not as some people might notice in some of my more recent stories and chapter updates. So the only way that I can give you the URL to get the necessary information is by spelling it out like I did.

A short summary of the Anime series is that it is a series that is much like the various Final Fantasy games that you may or might have played. However I find that it is quite unique in the sense that there are no romantic elements but still has an interesting storyline if you make a few allowances. It is about two twelve year old kids Ai and Yu (Japanese names obviously) who travel to a mysterious world called Neverland to find their parents who as scientists had gone there to explore but never came back. Along the way they meet a woman named Lisa(think Emma Peel from The Avengers tv series) and a mystery man called Kaze although he is replaced by Xander in my version of events.

I would also like to state for those of you who may be miffed at the attention I have been giving this fic since it was first posted that I have only been slow for three reasons:

a)I do not have all of the episodes of the series as I download them off the net and prefer to have them all before I move too far along so as not to miss any plot threads or events of importance. The last thing I need is someone who is a fan of the series telling me I missed something.

b)I have been getting considerably more reviews for my InuYasha/BtVS fanfic crossover "An Heir With Character" and I find it easier to write that fanfic than Xander Unlimited because of the abundance of material and the depth in the characters. I expect that once I conclude with the Final Fantasy Unlimited portion of the fanfic things will pick up since I plan to do story arcs involving the Tenchi Muyo universe and maybe one of the Gundam shows as well perhaps the Witch Hunter Robin series depending on how fast I can get episodes to watch and whether I develop a taste for the Witch Hunter Robin series. So please be patient.

c)I am currently on a job hunt so I cannot devote too much time writing fanfic since if I cannot find a job I will be forced to sacrifice some things including my internet connection.

In any case I will attempt to even out the amount of attention I give my newest stories and update them all on a regular basis. Thank You.

Two Weeks Later, The Ghost Train 

This place is turning out to be just like Sunnydale. , Xander thought to himself as he silently listened to Yu rattle off facts about Neverland Every other week something is either trying to kill you or the place where you decide to visit winds up being cursed with you not finding out until you're too deep to go back to where it's safe 

He had been traveling with these three people and their oversized parakeet ever since they had first bumped into one another. It wasn't like he had many options to choose from when the mushroom man had been blown up and they seemed to know more about where he was than he did. He supposed that he could have gone off on his own and tried to find his own way home but given that he wasn't Buffy or Giles he opted to side with them. Since then though they had come across a 'chocobo' which was apparently an overgrown parakeet that had a red hair fetish from the way it seemed to randomly chomped on Ai's hair and swing her around from left to right. Yu had taken to calling the bird Chobi which was as predictable as naming a dog doggy or a cat kitty but he didn't question their choice as the chocobo seemed to like them more than him. Unfortunately nor even a day passed before they came under attack again by a small group of giant mushrooms. They were a bit smaller than the one that had initially attacked them being a combination of blues and greens and seemed designed more for capture and restraint than destruction. Fortunately though his red gun which he had come to call 'crimson thunder' to himself was up to the job of destroying them although the main one that the rest sprang from took more than one shot to finish off. Once he had though the main attraction finally appeared in the form of some weird pipe smoking general looking guy with a mini-mushroom for a head. He called himself Fungus predictably and said he was ordered by someone calling himself the Count to destroy them in order to restore order to Neverland. Xander had given his opinion of that course of action in the form of six shots from crimson thunder which to his surprise Fungus caught in his teeth. Just as before though the golden cast on his right arm which was apparently named 'The Magun' had chosen to activate at that moment and before he knew it he was once again swept away by memories. Before he knew what was going on he had summoned another creature although this one was about the size of a bug so all he was able to see from his vantage point was a small dot. For some reason this creature 'Typhoon' had been able to encase Fungus in this force field which gradually began to shrink horizontally and vertically back and forth until it completely disappeared along with the mushroom general.

From there they had been given only a few moments to catch their breath before Ai took notice of Chobi's agitated state and somehow figured out that something called the Ghost Train was about to leave the station. It had been a close call but eventually they had managed to get on board before their main means of transportation left the station. That was how it had been for the past two weeks although thankfully they hadn't encountered another representative of 'bad guys 'r us' yet but he suspected that it was only a matter of time until it happened. In the mean time the woman Lisa and the kids continued their search for the parents while he accompanied them only to learn about this world he found himself in and hopefully find a way home. Personally he hoped it was sooner rather than later because this newest adventure of his wasn't the most enjoyable thing in the world especially his dreams. For the last two weeks whenever he slept his mind had been bombarded with images both bizarre and alien to him making him wonder if he wasn't losing his mind. It was all a jumble for the most part but a series of images continued to pop up from time to time and with them the grief and fury that seemed to accompany them. The desolate landscape with something coming towards him, the woman crying as she slipped away from him and the name which he tried his best never to think of when he had the tiniest bit of control. All in all the main reason why he had not interacted much with his new companions was not because he was trying to be jerk or anything but because he was doing his best to try and make sense of these images.

What I wouldn't do for a bottle of Tylenol right about now. he said as he used his left hand to pinch the bridge of his nose in an effort to stem another headache.

It was getting easier to become a lefty when he had spent most of his life being a right-handed person but he still occasionally hit himself on the head with the golden cast when he had an itch or something. Fortunately after the first few guffaws the others had been kind enough to keep their laughter at his mistakes on the inside. He had made a few other attempts to remove it or at least see if there were any latches that could enable it to be removed but to no avail. However it got on his right arm it seemed more and more than only the person who put it there would be able to take it off which meant that he too would be looking for someone albeit for different reasons. Hopefully though this person would actually be looking for him as well since it seemed unlikely that he would just get whisked away from Sunnyhell and given all this weird stuff only to be abandoned. At least that was what the logic he was currently using told him but then again when has logic and Xander Harris ever been used in the same sentence. Still the two kids and Lisa were good company but if Chobi ever got the idea to come over and take a bite out of his hair he would show the bird why his gun was called crimson thunder.

Still, despite how relatively smooth things were going so far it was only a matter of time before something happened and the longer they had to wait before the bad thing happened the worse it was likely to be when it finally hit. He just hoped that whoever they faced next was just as stupid or arrogant as that Fungus character otherwise they could be in some serious trouble.

The Floating Fortress of the Count, Same Time 

The palace was truly something to marvel at if only for the sheer size and unusual design but all that was nothing compared to the one who ruled over it all. The Count of Neverland was truly a contradiction to behold for while he looked to be no more than a spoiled brat of a child he possessed a power that terrified those loyal to him. Even his guardians who possessed formidable powers in their own right shook with fear whenever he directed his anger or annoyance towards them. In all of Neverland no one really knew how powerful he truly was or if even the form he was most often seen in was his true form at all. The only thing that could be said for certain was that those who dared to oppose him met swift and terrible ends either by unknown forces or at the hand of his guardians. Such was one of the topics of discussion of today but the Count seemed to take little if any interest in this.

"So how is the chaos going?" the Count asked his right hand man the puppet thing Oscar.

"One more world was conquered my liege and it was a very healthy world as well." Said Oscar who seemed to immensely enjoy his work with an almost insane edge to his voice.

"Oh?" commented a plant lady who sat off to the left side of the throne room looking very aloof and bored.

"Count, there is one more thing I would like to bring to your attention." Oscar mentioned as he seemed completely serious right then which caught the Count's attention.

"What is it?" the Count asked as though he just wished his servant would conclude his report so he could get back to eating his meal.

"It appears that someone new has arrived in Neverland and he has somehow come into the possession of The Magun." , Oscar replied trying to be as to the point and exact as possible, "Judging from how he handled one of Fungus' mushroom warriors there is a good chance he might be UNLIMITED!"

"Unlimited?" asked the Count who seemed to distinctly dislike what such a word implied about this newcomer.

"It is a term that is often used to describe a person who possesses power great than that of the gods." Oscar explained but before he could expand on his definiting he was hit right between the eyes by the fork used by the Count.

"I am the only god around here! It is not possible for anyone greater than me to exist, right?" said the Count as he looked to his guardians for confirmation of his decree.

"Yes sir." Oscar replied with a respectful bow.

"This guy should be taken out immediately. Right White Cloud Makenshi?" the Count asked looking up the elaborate sculpture above him to where a teenage boy dressed in white with a unique white sword rested.

Makenshi however was silent and did not look like he was going to say a word anytime soon.

"Count." Came the voice of the aloof plant woman as she floated down from above the royal child to sit on the edge of his floating throne.

"Before Makenshi takes him out I would like to see this Magun for myself." She said in an all too friendly tone of voice.

"What is it Helba, you want to play again?" the Count asked with suspicion in his voice.

"Yes, very much so." , Helba said before she noticed a bit of fluff floating around her head, "Stop annoying me already! Get out of my face loser!"

With a flick of her finger she knocked the puff ball away to the ground and after two bounces on the stone floor it exploded and reformed into the mushroom general Fungus.

"Thank God! I thought I was about to die!" mini-fungus said before standing at attention and saluting the Count.

"Hahahaha! Can the immortal Fungus die?" asked the Count in amusement.

"Of course I can't die! Even if I am ripped to shreds or completely destroyed I will still be resurrected!" , Fungus declared proudly as he walked over to his special pipe and attempted to use it like he usually did, "Except … it takes awhile .. before I regain my original size."

"You're so pathetic." Helba said snidely

"Very well Helba. You may entertain yourself with this newcomer." , the Count said but with a warning tone in his voice, "Just don't fail me."

"Of course my liege" Helba said before going on her way.

Village of Sweet Aroma, 7 hours Later 

"You have got to be kidding me!" Xander muttered as he took in the surrounding village.

"What is this?" Ai asked in a tone that made it clear that he was having just as hard a time accepting what she was seeing as he was right now.

What was laid out before them looked like the bottom of a fruit bowl if you looked at it from the point of view of a grape at the bottom of the bowl. Bridges criss-crossed between various pieces of fruit hanging from the ceiling but what really wierded him out was the cloaked figures he saw scattered around the area. He wasn't able to get close enough to any of them to see what they looked like underneath the hoods but they were brooding worse than deadboy on his worst day.

"It's no good." One of them droned with despair.

"We can't leave this place." Said another with equal grief.

"I will stay here the rest of my life." Came a distinctly female voice but just the same as the others in the emotion in her voice.

This went on and on without end as though these people had nothing more to look forward to but another day of grief and despair. He could never pretend to understand what they had been through but it was getting downright depressing being in their company. He just hoped that Ai and Yu finished their search of the area around the train station quickly before these people started to spoil his mood as well. After all he was about the most easy going and upbeat person he knew and it just wouldn't be right if these guys wound up turning him into deadboy jr.

Yuck! If I ever get that bad I hope that someone will have the decency to shoot me he thought to himself as the others took in their surroundings.

"Something weird is going on here." Ai said with a frown as she looked at all the glum people laying and walking around.

"There's no way our parents could be in a place like this." Yu commented with a little disappointment at this failure.

"Maybe." Lisa stated as though she was at least willing to give this place a once over before they left.

"Yeah. We might as well explore this place while we're here." , Xander said as he tried to get a better idea of the layout of this place, "Besides maybe I can find someone who knows how to get me home. This looks like some kinda refugee camp so there are probably all kinds of people here."

Hearing a munching sound from behind them they saw that Chobi was sampling the local delicacy but they were all a bit surprised that he seemed to be taking a bite out of the wall. Upon further examination though it was discovered that the buildings of this little village were made completely out of fruit. Ai tore off a sample from the wall and seemed encouraged by the good smell of the substance but Yu on the other hand was worried about whether or not it was safe to eat.

"You seem to be forgetting that this is Neverland rather than the real world." , Ai pointed out as though she was some sort of authority on this strange world, "It might be perfectly normal to grab something out of the wall and eat it here. It's even written in our parent's book 'Day of Succession'. "

Ai raised the sample she had taken to her mouth to eat it and thereby prove that it was safe to eat but at that precise moment one of the hooded figures ran by and snatched her back pack from her hands. This took them all by surprise so none could react in time before the thief crossed the bridge in front of the entrance to the train station to a doorway on the other side.

"Hey! Theif!" cried Ai before she tore after the figure like she was going to kill him.

"Sis" cried Yu.

"Wait for us Ai!" cried Lisa as the three of them took up pursuit of both the thief and Ai.

Unfortunately a throng of hooded people crossed their path at exactly the wrong time blocking the way that would allow them to pursue the little girl. Not about to allow the kid to go off into this strange world without any sort of supervision he placed a hand on the shoulders of two of the robed figures and leap-frogged over them to the other side. He didn't wait to see if Lisa or Yu were able to follow him because Ai was already pulling out fast ahead of him and if he waited there was a good chance that he would lose her in the network of tunnels and bridges. Once he entered the building, if you could call it that, on the other side of the bridge he just barely managed to see the tip of Ai's light red hair disappear down a hole in the floor. Without hesitating even once he jumped down after her but on the way down wondered if he should have just looked for a less uncontrolled way down. This train of thought though was halted when he literally hit rock bottom both in terms of landing on a stone surface and the fact that he landed embarrassingly on his butt. Taking a moment to make a mental note never to do something like that again he quickly got to his feet and ran out of the exit hoping that Ai hadn't gotten to far ahead of him.

"Ai wait up!" he yelled and fortunately she stopped just outside some kind of strawberry building which kinda went well with the freaky grape bundle buildings and watermelon buildings.

"The thief went in there! Let's get him!" Ai demanded before charging into the building.

"Forget Willow, Ai reminds me more of Buffy with how bossy she is." Xander mused to himself before following her inside.

When he got inside he was immediately reminded of the few bars he had been forced to drag his father away from when he was younger. It was one of those places where deadbeats and drunks liked to hang out and complain about how life had handed them a raw deal or how their troubles were all someone else's fault. Personally he felt that that was just loser talk for the most part but after experiencing the darker side of the Hellmouth he felt there was a pretty good chance some of them might be telling the truth. In any case though finding the robed figure that stole Ai's backpack was going to be like looking for a pink needle in a very large brown haystack with all the similarly dressed people in the room.

"Um … excuse me …" Ai said but as soon as the words left her mouth the entire room went silent and both of them found themselves the center of attention.

Not to be discouraged though Ai asked "Did any of you see someone just run through here? He had a brown hood over his … head … kinda like you .."

It was then that Ai's brain apparently caught up with her mouth as she realized what he already knew about how hard it was going to be to find the thief among all these look-a-likes.

Growling to herself she asked "He did come through here right? He had to have! He's a thief! Do you know where he went?"

To this though all the robed figures in the room did was begin laughing their heads off but it was the distinct note of insanity that entered into the laughs which seemed to be creeping Ai out and even him to a lesser degree. Whatever terrible calamity these people had been through had pushed them straight to edge between sanity and insanity and it seemed like the slightest bit of pressure was capable of knocking them off that edge. This scared Ai and apparently convinced her to look elsewhere for the thief and her back pack as she quickly vacated the premises. Glad to get away from these wackos he followed her out deciding to suggest to the girl that they regroup with the others but once he was outside though he saw one little problem with that course of action.

"I think we're lost." , Ai said as she realized where her single-minded approach had gotten the two of them, "There is just so many important things in that bag that Ack!"

Ai had apparently not been looking where she was going and unfortunately he was still four or so steps behind her so he was helpless to do anything but watch as she tripped and fell head first into a slice of watermelon that lay on the ground.

"Ai! Are you alright?" Xander asked as he quickly got to her side and helped her to her feet.

Ai didn't answer as she was visibly trying to keep a brave front on but he could recognize it for what it really was. Despite their good intentions Ai and Yu were just children and the task of looking for their parents was a large problem to overcome. It was no wonder that they were having difficulty keeping it together with every new location that turned out to be a dead end. He just hoped that between him and Lisa that they would be able to keep the brother and sister's spirits up.

"Sob I hate this place! Ai! Yu! Mom! Dad!" she yelled as she seemed on the verge of tears.

As the echoes from her yelling died down a bit they were both able to hear a sound that absolutely did not belong in their seemingly underground garden.

"The sound of waves? Of the ocean?" Ai asked as she tried to match the sounds of lapping water with what she knew.

They both searched the area for the source of the sound and finally narrowed it down to an alleyway ahead of them where a white water mist seemed to be spilling out of slowly. With their interest peaked they both proceeded to where the mist was coming from and Xander was quite happy with the distraction as it seemed to keep Ai together rather than breaking her down. The sight they saw when they reached the entrance to the alleyway and could see the end of it pushed even his ability to accept the strange and the unusual to its limits. There at the end of the alleyway was the biggest clam shell he had ever seen in his life and hanging or sitting in decorative places were at least twenty pearls of various sizes. Inside the shell was a bizarrely dressed woman who seemed to be some kind of sorceress or fortune teller but he couldn't tell which as her clothes bore a resemblance to what women of either profession would wear.

"I am Fabura, the Guiding One." , the woman called Fabura announced like your standard cryptic helper, "I see you have lost your bad little one."

"Yeah. I know that I should probably give up looking for it in this place being as strange and unpredictable as it is." , Ai said in response as she began to look over the strange woman's booth up close, "Speaking of which this sure is a strange stall you have. Kinda mysterious."

She continued to look around and once he himself got closer he could see that the pearls were not pearls at all but crystal balls that were semi-transparent. Inside each of these spheres were an odd assortment of objects kinda like those quarter machines at grocery stores that had plastic balls inside of them containing things like plastic rings and little toy cars. Looking to Ai though it seemed as though on in particular had caught her attention above all the others so he walked up behind her to see what it was. After all if Fabura asked for some kind of money in payment for this item it was probably better if he footed the bill than Ai. Inside the crystal ball was something that looked like a piece of a fur rug that had been made into a purse of some kind but then suddenly it turned around and gave them both a toothy smile with a set of sharp teeth. Ai put her finger up to her side of the crystal ball and in response the fuzzball seemed to try to bite it off as it opened and closed its mouth. She tried this several more times before giggling at the puff ball's antics.

"This is so cute!" Ai declared with a smile and Xander knew right then that he would be buying it for her.

"If you want it I will give it to you." , Fabura said with nothing but kindness in her voice.

"Could I? Would it be alright?" Ai asked excited by the prospect of having this unique creature.

Not apparently willing to wait for the woman to say no Ai reached up and took down the crystal ball which vanished seconds after being removed from its spot.

"The child's name is Pochepocket. Please take good care of it." Fabura said announcing the strange creature's name and identifying it as a child.

If that is what a child of that species looks like I'm not sure I want to meet mommy and daddy. He thought to himself as he tried to think of a way he could get it away from Ai if he had to in case it proved to be too dangerous for her to keep.

"Pochepocket?" , Ai inquired wanting to know more about her latest acquisition but then changed her mind by saying, "Thank you."

"That what you wish for, will come true." , Fabura said ominously, "Don't give up."

Ai seemed to take a moment to try and figure out what the woman meant by that but any thought was interrupted when they both heard the thrumming sound of an aircraft. Xander tried to pick out what type of aircraft but it was unlike anything he had ever heard both at air shows and on television. Something both he and Ai could agree on though was that chances are it wasn't anything good so they had better find out what it was before it came knocking on their metaphorical door. Ai had already left and he was about to do the same when he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find that Fabura had left her position in the clam shell to stand behind and to the left of him.

"Will you not accept a gift from me heir of the Dark Wind?" she asked encouragingly as though she was certain that he would like something she had to sell.

"I appreciate the thought Fabura but I have to catch up to Ai before she manages to land herself into some serious trouble." He said trying to politely excuse himself from her company without offending her in the process.

"This will not take long. Please, examine what I have to offer and you may find something you never knew you wanted." She said as she tried to persuade him forcefully without making it seem like she was trying to make him buy something.

Deciding that it would take less time to simply buy something from her rather than continue arguing with her he turned back to the assortment of crystal balls and tried to pick something out that he liked. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the items contained within other than they were not precisely what they appeared to be on the surface. It was like buying something that looked like a can of peanuts but in reality turned out to be a can of fake spring snakes but not necessarily humor oriented in their theme. Several minutes passed before his eyes finally came upon something that caught and held their attention beyond a momentary fascination. On the surface it looked to be nothing more than a simple mirror but there was something about its unusual design that told him that there was something more to it than that. Walking up to it he reached up with his left hand and took it down from its place among the other balls of crystal holding it at eye level for a moment to examine it closer. The crystal vanished like it had for Ai but for him once the mirror came to a rest in his hand it began to glow a light blue like a light bulb with a faded blue hue to it. He considered it quite beautiful before he noticed the blue glow begin to flow over his hand and crawl up his arm. For a moment he almost panicked before he realized that there was nothing unpleasant about the light and how it felt as its progress seemed to cease once it reached his shoulder.

"Urth is now bonded to you and will be with you for the rest of your days." , Fabura said in explanation for what he had just experienced, "As long as she is with you your friends will never be far from you heir of the Dark Wind."

"Thanks Fabura, farewell." Xander said as he tucked the mirror beneath the leather strap across his chest which held the various soil charges he needed for the Magun.

Pushing the question of what she meant by her cryptic words he ran in the direction he had seen Ai run and quickly found the source of the sound that had caught the child's attention. It was a ship of some kind designed to look like some kind of flower but what he was focused on was the clumps of black that contained prisms that looked like the one that had spawned the mushroom warrior that he had met upon awakening in Neverland.

"It's a subordinate of the Count!" cried one of the hooded figures in the street.

"Can we run away?" asked another sharing in the fear that filled the voices of the other citizens who spoke.

Looking at the strange ship he did not miss it when the ship expunged one of the prisms and dropped it on a direct collision course with the spot of dirt he was standing on.

They think they can just drop something on me and kill me , he thought incredulously before indignation rose up Guess I'll just have to teach them otherwise. 

Taking out Crimson Thunder he aimed it at the prism waiting until just the right part of it was exposed before taking his shot. Like expensive crystal glasses at an opera the prism shattered when his shot hit it causing it to fall to the ground in hundreds of harmless pieces. For a moment he wondered if that was all this new threat had to offer but that was before he saw the shards of the prism dissolve into a fine powder and falling upon everything in the area. It had diverse effects as it seemed to cause the citizens of this town to break out into laughter while another result was the sprouting of dozens of thorned yellow flowers. He mentally kicked himself as he looked all about only to find that he was completely surrounded by the flowers along with several of the people of this small depressing town. Taking aim with Crimson Thunder he began to pick off the flowers one at a time and seemed to have the advantage as it took only one well placed shot to destroy them. This unfortunately only released the pollen within in them and what he suspected the prism had contained when he destroyed it. As soon as the pollen touched the people any who were not laughing hysterically were doing so with a vengeance now. As the sound of a female giggle reached his ears he turned to see the plant lady that was likely responsible for this attack floating down to a watermelon rooftop using a flower umbrella.

"Why do you look so unhappy?" she asked so sarcastically.

Bringing Crimson Thunder to bear on her he asked "What do you want here? Do you work for the Count?"

"The Count? Am I not good enough to keep you entertained?" she asked faking being hurt by his words.

He decided to answer her question in a manner an enforcer like her would understand as he fired a shot from Crimson Thunder right at her head. Unfortunately all she did was place her umbrella like a shield in front of her and forced him to watch as the shot just bounced off of it like it was a spitball.

"Mmmmm, such a short temper." , she said with a taunting voice, "Aren't you gonna use that big bad Magun on me? C'mon! Hit me with the Magun!"

Bringing what she wanted out from beneath his cape he tried to will it to transform but no matter how much he willed it or focused on the woman as a target nothing happened. Then something else seemed to catch her attention and when he turned to see for himself he saw that Lisa, Yu and Chobi had finally found there way down here from the entrance to the train station.

"Xander! Where's Ai?" Lisa yelled in inquiry.

"Oh! We have some more guests! Here! Have some laughing pollen!" the plant lady said before aiming and spinning her umbrella in Yu, Lisa and Chobi's direction.

Within moments of it touching their skin both Yu and Lisa were laughing her heads off and seemed barely able to keep from rolling around on the ground. Hearing footsteps off to his right he saw that Ai had finally managed to run down the source of the trouble he just wished he had a more normal scene to greet her with.

"Don't come any closer Ai! The pollen is like laughing gas!" he yelled as he tried to thin the ranks of yellow flowers hoping that once they were all gone and some wind came through here that the clouds of pollen would dissipate.

"That's right and the more of my pets you destroy the more pollen is produced. Soon everyone will be so happy!" , plant lady crowed before regarding him mire directly, "Are you so happy that you can't think to use your Magun?"

Lady if I could blast you with it I would he thought angrily to himself as he redoubled his efforts to make the powerful weapon work.

As if some godly entity heard him the entire area for blocks was suddenly bathed in a bright emerald light that almost blinded him if he had not closed his eyes in time. When he was finally able to open his eyes he was glad to see that the light had apparently neutralized the pollen as it soon disappeared from sight and those affect by it returned to normal. That wasn't the only thing that changed as almost immediately after the pollen finished disappearing he could feel a familiar sensation coming from the Magun on his right arm. Looking down at the cast he smiled as he spotted the lens on the cast began to glow and rotate in its socket.

"It has moved." He said to let the Ai, Yu and the others know what was about to happen.

"What? What happened to my pollen?" plant lady exclaimed in confusion.

Bringing the Magun up to his chest he declared "Soil is my Power!"

With those words the transformation began changing the golden metal cast into the weapon that would put an end to this fight. The power he could feel flowing around his arm was amazing and even more capable of being analyzed without all those memories being burned into his head. If he had to compare it with anything it would be like putting your arm up to your elbow into hot tub water that is just below scorching temperature. It was traveling up and down his arm but as the parts of the Magun began to assemble into its active combat form. By the time the gun had finished assembling the sensation was gone and the weapon itself was in his hand and ready for use.

"The Magun has thawed." Xander spoke in a tone reserved for those with hearts of ice.

"Ha! Now fire that Magun and try to defeat me like you did Fungus!" , plant lady taunted while confirming that the two of them were comrades, "Try and squish me into a little box like you did him! Ha! No matter how many of my pets you destroy you'll never get through to me!"

"We'll see!" , he said accepting the challenge, "The soil charge triad to use against you has been decided!"

Reaching for the first cartridge he brought it out and said "The cry of the dark spirit, Dark Green!"

Tossing it into the air for a little bit of show and partially from an instinct that had been pressed into him with the weird memories he watched as it flawlessly.

"The one that does not forgive creation, virgin white!" Xander declared before sliding the second bullet into its proper slot.

"And finally, the one that freezes everything, ice blue!" he declared as the final cartridge fell end over end into the final vacant slot.

With the final element of the triad in place the tempo of the black heart sped up in its chamber and the drill bit sped up as well building up the charge of energy necessary to fire the weapon and unleash its awesome power.

Taking aim directly for the plant lady he yelled "Shine! I summon you! SHIVA!"

With a backwash of air that caused his cape to billow out dramatically behind him as the trio of energy beams emerged from the cloud of ignited powder that came from the three barrels. Once it had reached the halfway point the summon creature Shiva appeared although she looked more like a wooden carving of a mermaid that one might see on the front of a sailing ship than a powerful force of nature. Seemingly carved from the purest ice it flew towards its target with unerring accuracy and just before it reached the plant lady she summoned all of her plant soldiers to form a protective barrier in front of her. The blast hit with tremendous force and many were forced to look away but when the light vanished they looked to see that every single one of the flowers had been transformed into ice. For a moment it seemed as though he had imprisoned the plant lady within a mound of ice but a moment later it all crumbled down into a pile of fragmented ice. In the end all that was left was the plant lady as blue as a blue bird and slightly frigid at the moment as well severely cross with him.

"S-s-so c-cold! Y-you cheated!" , the plant lady complained between chattering teeth, "It's too cold around here! I'm going home!"

With those spoiled brat words she flew back into her ship and beat a hasty retreat thought the only exit from the cave in which the village laid. Looking at one of the supposed big bads of this realm he had to say he was a little disappointed in their performance so far as a whole. He had expected something on level with Angelus or at least peroxide boy but they were more on level with a bunch of arrogant fledgelings than serious threats. It was possible that they were just underestimating him and would step up their attacks and strategies eventually but he hoped to be long gone before that happened.

"Thanks Xander!" Ai said running up to him.

"Ai! Thank goodness you're safe!" Lisa said as she strode up to them.

"Yeah but my clothes got all sticky from the watermelons." She said showing the sticky red juices soaked into her shirt.

"Hey sis, what's that?" Yu asked pointing to the fur ball purse hanging at her side.

Almost as in answer to his question Pochepocket leapt forward and almost bit the boy's finger off at the knuckle.

"It looks like it's alive." Lisa commented seemingly intrigued by the creature.

"I got it from a lady named Fabura. His name is Pochepocket." , Ai said holding him up for all to see, "Cute isn't he?"

To their credit neither Yu nor Lisa did anything to offend Ai right away but Xander knew it was only a matter of time before that brother instinct caused Yu to stick his foot in it.

"It isn't evil is it?" Yu asked warily.

"Don't worry it's alright! It's what saved everyone!" Ai declared proudly.

"So did you find your back pack Ai?" Lisa asked in order to change the subject before the girl clued into what her brother had asked and got mad.

"The people here say that you can't find something here once it has been lost." Ai replied and for a moment seemed sad but fortunately Xander had a great sense of timing.

"Fortunately the rules of Neverland don't seem to apply to us eh?" he asked with a grin which was soon mirrored on the faces of all the others.

"Right! So…" Ai began before looking her brother in the eye and signaling something.

"…We'll definitely find our parents!" both of the children said in unison.

"Oh brother!" Xander muttered before rolling his eyes in annoyance at the sight before joining the others in a brief chuckle.

Their brief moment of levity was short lived as a chime began to sound and was traced back to the watch like object hanging from its neck. For a moment none of them knew what it meant but in the end it was Yu who finally seemed to catch on and with no little concern let them in on what was going on.

"We're in trouble now! Chobi is saying that the Ghost Train is about to leave!" he declared conveying the urgent nature of what he was saying.

Terrified of missing their train all of them broke into a run with Yu and Lisa leading the way as only they knew the route that would take them back to the entrance of the train station. It took them ten minutes to retrace the route to arrive back at the entrance but that did not mean that their journey was over as they still had to go down the spiral staircase to the doorway they had used earlier to exit the Ghost Train. Continuing their mad pace down the spiral staircase they were gratified to see that the train was still there but that relief soon vanished as the watch around Chobi's neck which up until now had been chiming in synch with the bell that was now sounding in the station suddenly stopped. Looking back and forth between Chobi and the Ghost Train they were upset to see the spiral drill at the bottom of the train begin to rev up as it was confirmed that the watch on Chobi had stopped ringing. To seal their fate they watched as the various entrances to the interior of the train sealed up to be replaced by those spooky eyes that showed them where the doors once were and would be again at the next station. Before they could say anything the train took off in a rush of air and a flash of light leaving them gasping for air on the stairs and looking at the space their main means of transportation had once occupied.

"Well, this sucks!" he said as he joined the others who were on their knees resting from their insane race to get back to the station.


End file.
